After the Champions League, Montpellier is playing for a place in the Final Four of the Judo Pro League

Montpellier can hope to qualify. Midi Libre – MICHAEL ESDOURRUBAILH

The MJO is going to Orléans on Wednesday for the quarter-final of the French mixed team championship.

Having just emerged from the daydream of participating, at home, in the prestigious Champions League, Montpellier Judo Olympic has a date with another highlight of its season: the quarter-final of the Judo Pro League, the French mixed team championship.

Seventh in the continental event won at the FDI Stadium in Montpellier on December 21 by Paris Saint-Germain, the Montpellier team travels to Orléans to try to secure a place in the semi-finals and therefore a ticket to the Final Four, on January 18 at the Dojo in Paris. “The message I gave to the athletes is this: if they want to relive the experience of the Champions League next year, it will require a victory this Wednesday, explains MJO coach Arthur Combeau. The next edition will take place in Belgrade, Serbia. Seeing the atmosphere created by the Red Star Belgrade supporters in Montpellier, it will definitely be an event to experience.”

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Combeau: “We will have a card to play”

For the Héraultais, the objective of qualifying among the eight best teams in the Judo Pro League has already been achieved. The rest is just a bonus. “We're going to fight with our weapons,” continues the club's sports boss. Orléans finished second in the regular season, they'll be a tough and ambitious opponent. Four of their judokas reached the final of the French 1st Division championships individually. For our part, we want to perform well, we've proven that we're a great team. We'll have a card to play.”

If he has to take his judokas to the capital of the Centre-Val de Loire region, Arthur Combeau doesn't think it's a disadvantage to travel: “In the years to come, it might be a plus to host, like in football or rugby. For the moment, that's not the case, we're not going to fight in a hostile context. And then we won our two away matches in the regular phase, in Bègles and Nantes.”

At the same time, most of the Montpellier judokas will head to Austria for an international training camp. They hope to make the trip with a qualification in their pocket.

The group: Sarah Bothy (-52kg), Emma Melis (-57kg), Eva Grassin (-63kg), Camille Meyer (-70kg), Omayma Sabhi (+ 70kg), Axel Mohedano (-66kg), Hugo David (-73kg), Anthony Tama (-80kg), Hugo Metifiot (-90kg), Angel Gustan (+ 90kg).